


licence to kill

by fabulousfairytales



Series: The Schmico Advent Calendar 2019 [3]
Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: James Bond AU, M/M, in which nico is 007, levi is q, what else can you wish for
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2020-01-19
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:41:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21961522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fabulousfairytales/pseuds/fabulousfairytales
Summary: Nico Kim has earned the title of 007. Levi Schmitt is the new Quartermaster that Nico just can't get out of his head.
Relationships: Nico Kim/Levi Schmitt
Series: The Schmico Advent Calendar 2019 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1559269
Comments: 24
Kudos: 81





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! Merry Christmas and happy holidays to everyone!!  
> So here it is, the big reveal. The 007 AU people were actually asking for.  
> This is chapter one, chapter two will follow around the 31st! :)  
> Enjoy!!

Nico hated getting shot. Nothing ruined an exquisite suit quite like a big fat blood stain. Well, and the hole that the bullet created. If it weren’t for his image, Nico would’ve switched to some more casual wear years ago. At least in his spare time. But by now he already had established that he really was that guy.

You know, the one where you can’t decide if you’d rather see him in a suit and tie or nothing but what nature gave him.

Anyways, Nico was holding onto the steering wheel with his one hand while pressing onto the wound on his thigh with his other, trying to stay on course to get back to the headquarters as fast as possible. Even though he was okay with pain management, it didn’t mean that he had to prolong the time it took him to get back so somebody could get that bullet out of his body.

009 was a baby before he betrayed everyone. Back when they were still in training, they were on a mission together. He got stabbed once and then complained the whole way back about it. Nico was so close to just strangle him to make it stop. He obviously didn’t, but had he known that this weasel would betray them all like that, he wished he had done it.

As he shook his head to stop himself from thinking further of that traitor, he noticed that he wasn’t that far away from the headquarters anymore. He drove by the familiar group of trees and then he was already at the tunnel to enter the building. Or well, the mountain.

Nico pumped the brakes, letting out a hiss meanwhile, to cruise around the corner before speeding up again until he came to a screeching halt, perfectly parked in his spot.

“Bloody hell, Nico. We lost connection half-way through. How could that happen? Are you –“ Levi stopped when the car door opened and a bleeding 007 climbed out of the driver’s seat.

The Quartermaster quickly ran to him. He wrapped Nico’s arm around his shoulder and his own around the agent’s back, supporting him on the way to the med bay.

“Sweet Jesus, what happened?” He asked worried. This was his first time he’s seen him like that. They’ve worked together for six months und until now 007 had always managed to get out of everything without getting hit.

“I got shot,” Nico simply stated, trying to catch a glimpse of Levi worried face. He looked cute when he was worried. Especially when it was because of him.

Nico’s been trying to get him to agree to go on a date with him for months now. All he got was a short ‘No’. He would’ve stopped asking if Levi told him to, but he didn’t. He knew that Levi wanted to say yes, but something held him back. Nico even once asked him if he should stop asking and Levi quickly denied that.

So Nico made it his mission to wait. He would wait for as long as Levi needed to finally say yes. He would not rush or push him. It’s not like he was able to find someone else. Not that he wanted to.

Nico couldn’t just go out and find a person to be with. His job was the biggest reason. If Levi weren’t already in this line of work, he wouldn’t even consider pursuing him. He probably shouldn’t even consider him in their current situation.

Nico always told himself that he didn’t need anyone. That he would never let anyone get close enough to care for them. That was until he met Levi.

“Yes, I can see that.” Levi rolled his eyes and helped him up onto the examination table. He then turned around to get one of the doctors, but Nico grabbed his arm and stopped him.

“Hey Levi?”

“Yeah?” He turned back, looking down at Nico’s hand on his arm. Nico loosened his grip and Levi slipped his hand into Nico’s, running his thumb over the back of his hand. The agent smiled softly at the unexpected touch.

“Will you finally go out with me?” He whispered. He got a huffed out laugh and a squeeze of his hand as an answer.

“No,” Levi chuckled. “But I’ll get the doc and then be back, okay?”

Nico nodded. He wished he hadn’t, because it meant that Levi would let go of his hand again. Leaving him behind alone and in pain.

-

“Kim. You’re going to this event to socialize. Pollanto’s right hand man will be there and he’s looking for potential business partners. You will get close and gather information. Or at the very least put some fear into him.”

Nadia Pollanto has been one of Nico’s very first targets when he joined the MI6. Back then she was just a small business owner dealing and beating up people.

Not really great behaviour, but nothing worthy to ring the alarm bells of the MI6, but to get onto the radar due to her connections to bigger organizations she did jobs for.

But now, almost eight years later, her business has grown and so did her hunger for power. By now, she didn’t just want to control most of the pharma industry, no, she wanted more. Now she had created a virus that could put the whole world in danger.

“Very well. The virus is set to be released in a big city, possibly London,” M said, pushing her red hair back behind her ear.

“Really?” Nico rolled his eyes, “London? What a bloody cliché.”

“Well, you can kindly ask her to carry out the plan somewhere else if it suits you better, 007,” M proposed with an raised eyebrow. One day, this agent would be the death of her with his sassy attitude. At least he and their Quartermaster got along just well.

She would never say it out loud, but Mr. Kim was one of their absolute best. The Double O division was already made of the best agents the MI6 had, but 007 was something else. It was because of his talent why she let him get through with things that she wouldn’t let 002.

“I know you do not mean that, but I would be very much inclined to do so,” Nico said, trying to hold back his smirk, but M knew him long enough to know every little detail of his face.

She gave him a very pointed stare.

“Q will inform you about the rest of the details as I do not have the time for your shenanigans, Mr. Kim,” M said before turning around and leaving the room, the clicking of her heels getting quieter the more distance she got between them.

Nico just chuckled. She would’ve left now anyways since Levi was already in the room, being entertained by their exchange.

“You really tried to keep up with her posh language,” he snickered as he handed him a small device.

“Dude, I swear, eight years in and this part still kills me sometimes,” Nico admitted as he inspected the device a little closer.

“What do I have here?”

“This is a data transmitter.” Well, actually it was a wireless hyper speed transmitter. But Levi had learned to not give his devices complex names anymore. Nico would just stare at him blankly until he’d explain further.

“It cracks any encryption and copies data by just placing it on top of a device. Copies 10 gigabytes of data within one minute.”

“Oh, cool.” Nico had no idea what this meant, but chose to simply be supportive since Levi was so adorable when he was geeking out over his inventions.

“No, you don’t understand. This is superfast considering that it transfers the data wireless. This is a big deal! But,” he groaned frustrated, “I can’t share it with anyone in the field.”

“Hey,” Nico patted his shoulder, “at least I know.”

“Yeah,” Levi muttered, “at least you know.”

-

“And who do I owe the pleasure?” The subject of this mission asked.

Levi always tried to keep his distance from the people of the list that they were trying to gather intel from. This was 100% purely because he didn’t want to jeopardize his partner’s missions. Totally that. He just wanted to stay professional and that’s it. No other reason. Great, now he was calling themselves partners too.

Nico had started calling them that the first time Levi showed up during a mission to help him out. Levi always points out to him that he actually works for the whole division, not just him, but somehow he still kept going.

“Oh, pardon me. I forgot to introduce myself there. I am Kim. Nico Kim,” he said and Levi swore he just threw up a little in his mouth. His, strictly professional, partner loved to introduce himself like that. As if he was some super secret MI6 agent or something. Oh wait…

Well, okay he was a super secret agent from the agency who’s name Levi didn’t dared to think of, because the last time he said it out loud, Nico threw him to the ground and told him to shut his cute face up and that they didn’t know who was listening. Which, frankly, was a really rude thing to say since Levi constructed this part of the building all by himself. There was no way anybody besides them was able to even breathe into the direction of the entrance without him knowing, much less even set foot in here to plant a bug or camera.

How dare 007 think the MI6 would’ve chosen him for the job if Levi wasn’t the best in his field. And when he said best, he meant actually the best. Not the best of his class or county, no. Actually the best. He’s been in the field for 6 years, he was recruited young, and only once had he met someone who was able to keep up with him.

Lately there has been this one hacker that he’s only heard of. They’re supposed to be good. Quick. Seeing everybody’s move before they even thought of it. M even compared them to a dark version of Levi, which sounded intriguing. It’s not like his job has been easy peasy lemon squeezy simply because he was so good, but a little competition would be fun. He just had to look out that he didn’t mention his eagerness to engage with said hacker in front of his partner.

Last time he got excited to be going up against somebody, his stuck up little bitch of a partner had tried to lecture him on how this business is no game and that they were doing important things saving people’s lives and stuff like that.

To be fair though, he only later found out that this hacker Levi was excited to work against was part of a network that got their former boss killed. So maybe Nico was just looking out for him. Who even knew why Nico Kim was doing anything?

“Nico Kim, huh?” The man in front of him asked. If Nico was being honest, he was quite attractive. His light brown hair reminded him of someone particular who was currently listening to everything he was saying, so he was pushing himself to get his flirt on to annoy this listener even more.

Maybe he was being a little shit right now, but Nico enjoyed every second he could use to bug his partner since he just won’t agree to go out with him on a date. Something something the job, something something, danger. Yeah no shit, their job was dangerous, but to Nico that meant doing anything to get to have some fun.

And it’s not like he was trying to push him into anything he didn’t want. Of course not. But Nico was basically a super spy and his job entailed being able to read people. And Levi was obviously as into him as he was into Levi. Even if he wasn’t who he was, it wouldn’t have been hard to see this. All you needed was two eyes.

“Yes, that is my name. And yours is…?” He asked in his most sultry voice as he placed his hand onto the man’s shoulder, giving it a little squeeze.

The man looked at Nico’ hand and then up into his eyes, smirking and leaning a little closer towards Nico.

“I’m Jack Glass. Tell me Nico, what field brought you here to?”

“You’re an aspiring microbiologist working under Calliope Torres and Atticus Lincoln, together the three of you...” Levi said through the earpiece. 

“And we’ve come up with a serum that enhances your strength and stamina. One hundred percent non-traceable. Our only problem lies in the stabilizer. That’s why I’m here. To see if someone might be interested in our serum and could imagine working together with us on that project.”

Nico had noticed that Jack’s face had changed the moment he told him that he worked under those two scientists. Oh, this was going to be fun.

“I don’t mean to be as rude as it might sound like, but that’s a lot of responsibility for a glorified assistant, isn’t it?” Jack asked with a smirk. Nico heard Levi’s snort, but just chuckled appropriately and tried to remain level-headed.

“It is an awful lot of responsibility, but I do work very closely with Dr. Lincoln. I know the project by heart, just as he does.” He tried his best not to let the other man know how annoyed he was, but this guy was pushing it.

“I mean, yes of course you do, you have to be very mindful which coffee to bring at what time of the day, don’t you?”

Nico really wanted to put a bullet through his head just so he would shut up, but reminded himself that putting up with and distracting him further got them more time for Levi to do his magic. Or more Levi’s device. The only reason he was still here was so Levi’s device could copy the data from the douchebag’s phone. It was a known fact that he was basically Pollanto’s right hand man.

“Done,” Levi informed him, “You might leave now.”

“Sure,” Nico replied, holding eye contact with Jack. “I have to make sure douchebags like you get the one with the laxatives.”

-

“Okay, spidey. Be careful now. Not only do they have lasers pointed at the doors and windows, if you don’t leave quickly enough, the thermostat will pick up your body heat, so put the device right on top of his tablet, let it copy the data and then leave asap.”

“What did you just call me?” Nico asked, completely ignoring everything else Levi just said. It’s not like it mattered anyways since he new his mission back to front. As high-profile the target was, the task was a pretty easy one.

“Spidey.”

“I am not a bloody spider.”

“You sure look like one.” Levi grinned as he watched his partner through the camera. He was hanging right under the ceiling to get around the laser alarm to get into Pollanto’s office. It’s taken them months to get any info on the location of his second, the one he used mostly for his health related business.

“Take that back.”

“No.”

“Levi.”

“For fuck’s sake call me Q when we’re on a mission.”

“We?”

Nico used to actually call him Q when first meeting him. That was until he saw his driver’s license when he forgot his wallet in his office.

“Nico –“ He groaned in annoyance.

“So there’s a we now?”

“Shut up. There is nothing. Okay, deactivated the laser and looped the security cameras.”

“Mark it in my calendar. Day 218 and Levi Schmitt finally called us a ‘we’,” Nico snickered. He opened the harness that’s attached to the grapple hook around a pipe in the ventilation shaft and took a look around the office.

“Why don’t you tell them my address too so they can just smother me in my sleep? I don’t have your ninja skills to take out somebody who’s ready to kill me.”

“Wow, did you just assume –“

“Oh shut up,” Levi cut him off, “you were literally trained by Masaaki Hatsumi himself in ninjutsu, okay? Don’t even try, I read your file.”

Nico smirked widely at that. Levi read his file, huh? The thing is, this information wasn’t even part of it. Which means that Levi must’ve dug deeper.

The office was ridiculous. There was nothing in there save for the desk, two chairs on each side, a huge bookshelf and the tablet in question. He placed the device on top of the tablet and made sure that it was copying before he turned around and studied the shelf in front of him.

Everything in this room was white and spotless. Even the books. Nico was convinced that this guy has not read a single book in here. Those books are just in here for the _aesthetic_.   
Nico’s lips curled up into a grin.

“You know, I could protect you.” Even if Levi couldn’t see it, he could hear Nico wiggle his eyebrows suggestively.

“I should’ve never called you spidey.”

“So you’re taking it back?”

The device beeped, signalling Nico that it was done copying data from the tablet.

“Never.”

Nico chuckled, taking it from the desk before shoving it back into his pocket and putting on the harness again. As he closed the belt, he frowned, looking directly into the security cam, knowing that Levi was watching him.

“Wait. Couldn’t you have just disabled the alarm before I got in here?” He asked, before jumping up and grabbing the rope, climbing up until he was able to touch the ventilation shaft. After he pulled himself up and closing the shaft, he took a deep breath, wiping away some sweat from his forehead before he continued climbing up to the roof. Levi has been awfully quite during this whole ordeal.

“You really made me do that for the sole purpose of calling me a spider, didn’t you?” He couldn’t even be mad at him. There was exactly one instance that he was legitimately pissed at him, and they swore to never talk of it again.

“I’ve been waiting for months to call you spidey, okay?”

-

Nico still remembered the day they met like it was yesterday. M had sent him to the London Gallery of Art to meet up with the new Quartermaster, short Q. He sat down on a bench in front of a pretty artwork of a small cottage in the snow.

Paintings always intrigued Nico. You could hide so much in a painting. There were so many ways. You could use ultraviolet paint or hide small details in the background. Or write it in the description.

Nico’s dad used to be a painter. Or at least that’s what he heard. He didn’t even know if it was his whole career or just a hobby. He had a very creative mind, that’s all he knew. That’s all he was told.

He died when he was still a toddler, leaving him behind in this cold, dark world.

There was nothing that he knew about his mum other than that she had died when giving birth to him. When he was a teenager, Nico had wished that he could’ve just died along with her since it wouldn’t have done much of a difference. He was alone, nobody was looking after him. So why bother?

He still thinks that this would be true, but at least now he gets to save the world. He had no doubt that if it weren’t for him, there would be someone else in his place doing an equally good job as him, maybe even a better one who would be able to save some people that he had failed.

But in general, he was good now. He had a job, a purpose. He was saving lives.

And as of right now, that was enough for him.

When he heard steps approaching, he turned around. A young man with glasses and semi-wild hair was approaching him. He wore a jacket over his ill-fitting suit and sat down next to him.

“Always makes me feel a little melancholy. A grand old warship being ignominiously hauled away for scrap.” He sighed. “The inevitability of time, don't you think? What do you see?”

What the hell was he talking about? Nico had other things to do. Like meeting his Quartermaster.

“A bloody big ship. Excuse me,” he replied and was about to get from his seat.

He was stopped when the stranger said, “Double O Seven.” He knew who Nico was.

“I'm your new Quartermaster.” _What?_

Nico almost let out a snort. “You must be joking.” This kid? For real?

“Why, because I'm not wearing a lab coat?” This was supposed to be the new Q? Amazing.

“Because you still have spots.”

“My complexion is hardly relevant.”

“Well, your competence is.” He did not want to die because some cute guy messed up his equipment. Wait, cute?

“Age is no guarantee of efficiency.”

“And youth is no guarantee of innovation.”

“I'll hazard I can do more damage on my laptop sitting in my pyjamas before my first cup of Earl Grey than you can do in a year in the field,” Q retorted.

The image of Q in silky pyjama boxers entered Nico’s mind. Oh dear, this was absolutely not the time to start crushing on someone. Especially not him.

“Oh, so why do you need me?”

“Every now and then a trigger has to be pulled.”

“Or not pulled. I’m sure you can do… many things in your pyjamas, Q,” Nico teased and winked at him.

Not expecting that, Q let the box in his hands hit the ground with a loud thud. Immensely embarrassed with the only wish to just dissolve into thin air, he quickly bend down to pick up the box.

What he also didn’t expect was the agent doing the same thing, resulting in their hands touching. He glanced down at their hands, before looking into the agent’s eyes again, searching for whatever the hell it was that had Q irritated like this.

He motioned for Nico to keep and open up the box.

“Double O Seven.” He cleared his throat and reached into his pocket to give Nico an envelope. “Ticket to Shanghai. Documentation and passport.”

“Thank you.”

“And this,” Q continued, pointing at the box on Nico’s lap. “Walther PPK/S 9mm short. There's a micro-dermal sensor in the grip. It's been coded to your palm print so only you can fire it. Less of a random killing machine, more of a personal statement.”

Nico had to admit, it was impressive.

“And this?” He asked when he noticed the empty space next to the gun. Q handed him a small transmitter.

“Standard issue radio transmitter. Activate it and it broadcasts your location. Distress signal. And that's it.”

“A gun... and a radio.” Nico put the transmitter into the provided cavity and closed the box. “Not exactly Christmas, is it?”

“Were you expecting an exploding pen?” Q chuckled at his own joke. “We don't really go in for that anymore.” He got up. “Good luck out there in the field. And please return the equipment in one piece.” As much joy as building these things got him, repairing them was a pain in the arse.

Q gave Nico a nod and then left the gallery.

“Brave new world,” Nico muttered under his breath.

-

It’s been weeks since they last had a lead on Pollanto’s whereabouts. But today, their boss sent them down to Las Vegas. There were rumours that Pollanto loves to play a round or ten of Roulette in Sin City before going on a business trip that might offer some serious gain for her company.

Nico wasn’t a big fan of the states. But he was a fan of fun. And his definition of fun was Levi coming along with him since he wasn’t quite ready yet with his newest gadget that he said

Nico will absolutely need for his mission.

He watched him fumble around in the private yet and although he would’ve loved to sit down next to him, trying to distract him, he knew that this device was important to their mission. Instead he just kept to himself, reading a book, occasionally watching his partner improve the device.

So when Levi came over to his seat, after hours of screwing parts into other parts and connecting different wires, Nico thought he was done and about to explain what it even was and how to use it. However, his partner just leaned his head against Nico’s shoulder, closing his eyes and slowly dozing off.

A bit surprised, but nonetheless very content with that, Nico watched him a little bit before he went into the land of dreams himself.

It took them an hour to get from the airport to their hotel rooms. To Nico’s dismay, they weren’t sharing rooms. Which wasn’t that surprising since the MI6 really wasn’t the agency that had to look out for their money. At least their rooms were right next to each other so Nico didn’t have to miss him that bad.

After Nico had unpacked, he went over to Levi’s room. They still had some talking to do regarding the mission and the device.

He entered the room and made himself comfortable on the couch, waiting for Levi to show him this new device he worked on for the past few days.

After Levi sat down next to him, he gave Nico the black box, containing the mysterious gadget. Nico opened it, revealing a gun and a small hand-held device.

Nico picked up the gun. It was light. Very light. He checked the barrel and to his surprise, there were already bullets in there.

“How is this so light?” He asked in confusion.

“The gun is made from a super lightweight material and the bullets aren’t really there to inflict severe injury,” the Quartermaster explained.

“They’re not?”

“No. The bullets are pretty hollow.” Nico dug out one of the bullets and was surprised at how light it was.

“When they hit, they won’t go in as deep as normal bullets would. There are microscopic transmitters on the head of them, releasing when they come in contact with skin. They are made to put a tracker on someone from a wide distance. And since they get under the target’s skin, they won’t just wash away after a few showers.”

“Wow,” Nico whispered as he stuffed the bullet into his pocket. Levi really was some kind of genius. He couldn’t comprehend how he made those things even if he explained them to Nico.

“I just need to add your DNA to the monitor,” he pointed at the device next to the gun, “so only you can access the position of the trackers. Just as another layer of security. The gun already has it, but the monitor doesn’t.”

“Alright.”

Instead of going back to his room, Nico decided to stay over and watch Levi perfecting his work. He usually didn’t get to watch him like this. There was always something to do, some mission to go on, some event to attend. So being here with him, watching him do his outstanding work so up close was just what he’s been wanting to for months.

He wasn’t a total creep though, after a while he turned on the TV, looking through the channels. As always, there was nothing on, so he decided to switch over to Netflix. Just when he settled on a movie, his partner sat down next to him, scooting a bit closer, reaching over to pick up his glass from the coffee table in front of them.

With him so close, Nico couldn’t help but to fake-yawn and stretch a bit before putting his arm around Levi’s shoulders. He grinned to himself when Levi didn’t protest. Contrary, he actually leaned in closer.

The movie was bad, but neither of them actually paid any attention. It’s been a while since Nico had felt so utterly relaxed. And that although he was still in the US.

To Nico, Levi was that person that he just had to look at and all his worries would be instantly erased. Although Nico was trying his best to enjoy Levi’s presence, he was also dead tired.   
So only shortly after, he already had fallen asleep, an arm wrapped around Levi and head leaning against his shoulder.

Levi caught him sleeping when he started to snore quietly. Levi didn’t even think that he’d snore. Seeing him like this, sleeping and vulnerable got him thinking.

Maybe he should just give him a chance. Nico clearly wanted to be with him and Levi wanted to be with him too. What held him back was fear. Fear had controlled far too much of his past. Levi wanted to take risks. He wanted to be on this mission. And he wanted to be with Nico.

So maybe his fear should just screw itself.

After watching him sleep for a while, Levi carefully ran his hand through Nico’s thick hair. It was soft and felt so nice between his fingers. There was no such thing that made him feel like this with all those butterflies dancing around in his stomach.

Levi stopped went Nico started to stirr, but it already was too late.

Nico woke up and was confused for a short moment, but when he saw Levi, he couldn’t help but to grin.

“You’re pretty tired, huh?” Levi asked and caressed Nico’s cheek.

“A bit maybe.”

“Then go to bed.”

Nico just closed his eyes and nodded softly against Levi’s chest.

“Your bed,” Levi added.

“Yeah,” Nico mumbled.

It took Nico a bit until he finally was ready to get up. Levi brought him to the door.

“Goodnight, Nico.”

“Goodnight, Levi.”

The agent went straight to bed. He took off his clothes and then slipped under the warm blanket. With a smile on his lips he fell asleep five seconds later.

-

“What is a handsome gentleman like you doing all alone at this bar when you could have some fun at the blackjack table?” The bartender asked when he approached Nico.

“Who says I’m not having fun right here?”

“Are you?”

“Well, the company is quite nice.”

“Is it now? Well, then let company fetch you something to drink.”

“Alright. Then, a medium dry martini please. Shaken, not stirred,” he said and winked at the bartender.

“Coming right up.”

Nico watched the guy mix his drink until a woman in a red silky dress interrupted.

“Trent, you’re gonna bartend our private party in twenty,” the woman told him. When she turned around, Nico almost couldn’t believe his eyes.

She had a look at Nico and nodded, a smirk creeping up her dark red lips.

“Mr. Kim. It has been a while.”

Nico tried his best to not let her see his confusion and instead, returned the nod as well the smirk. “A while it has been, indeed, Miss Pollanto.”

The two continued their stare for a couple more seconds until Pollanto turned back and walked away. Nico held up his gaze and watched her leave. He hadn’t seen Pollanto in years. She used to avoid him, not make sure that he actually sees her. She still looked exactly the same. Except that now, her dark hair was cut short to her chin. Guess when you’re running a multi-billion company with the goal to release a virus to gain even more money, you barely age.

Nico turned his attention back to Trent when he placed the martini in front of him.

“One shaken Martini.”

“Thank you very much,” Nico replied. He took a sip and nodded approvingly.

“You know, she and her friends are not the nicest people,” he warned him.

“Yeah.” He placed the olive into Nico’s drink. “But they tip well.”

Nico returned his grin. “Guess I can’t say anything against that.”

He slipped him an extra $50 bill as he got up to head over to one of the tables.

-

It was the big day of their mission, but since the exchange won’t happen until 6 pm, and for Levi that meant being stuck behind his screen in his room, he went for a swim in the infinity pool downstairs. Levi couldn’t remember how long it had been since he woke up and just did something he wanted to do that wasn’t to immediately get ready for work.

Right now, he was laying on his back, floating over the water and letting the sun warm him up. Although they were here for a mission, Levi couldn’t help but to feel so at ease right now. It was the quiet before the storm that Levi always had cherished a lot.

As he was looking at the different shaped clouds, he couldn’t help but to think of the interaction between Nico and this bartender. Objectively speaking, the guy was attractive. Very, even.

Levi wouldn’t be surprised if Nico went downstairs again, without the equipment to… talk some more. Why wouldn’t he? They were both attractive men. Levi had never met anyone who couldn’t at least admit that Nico was handsome.

And that bartender was definitely into him. Levi rolled his eyes. Of course he was into him.

Levi turned over to swim a few rounds, mostly to distract himself from the hypotheticals of Nico Kim’s nightly activities. Those were none of his business. He should just keep his nose to himself.

Maybe Levi wasn’t as buff as 007, but he was a quick swimmer. After doing a few rounds until he was panting, he climbed out of the pool, his legs feeling like pudding. He was glad that his part of the mission was being parked behind several screens with an earpiece to instruct his partner and not running around like Nico had to do.

Speaking of Nico, the agent just returned from his run the same time Levi got out of the water. He slicked back his hair with his hand, grabbing his towel with the other. He yet had to notice Nico staring at him from afar.

Right after he got out of the pool, he picked up his glasses and headed to the guest entrance. When he noticed Nico, he couldn’t help but to smile a bit. Not because of any type of feelings, of course no. He was just happy to see a familiar face, that’s all. What was that thing again about telling his fear to piss off? 

“Nico.” He nodded awkwardly.

“Levi.” Nico returned the nod as he held open the door for his partner.

There it was again. The word partner. The word that Levi couldn’t seem to forget and that makes him feel all weird and strangely giddy. There was no reason to feel giddy about it. Even no reason to use that word in connection to them.

Levi was his Quartermaster. He was designing devices for everyone in the agency. Not just Nico. He wasn’t his partner in crime or anything. He was his Quartermaster. And that’s it.

“I’m taking the stairs. Should I come over then?”

What a show-off. “Sure.”

The ride on the elevator was quick. Just because the MI6 had a big spending pool didn’t mean they got the penthouse.

Levi was exhausted. But the good kind. All he wanted to do was to sit down and relax for a bit until Nico would come over. He quickly opened his door and slipped into his room.

The second the door closed, somebody pressed their hand against Levi’s mouth. His body got shoved against the wall and he felt the cold metal of a gun against his temple. His eyes widened in shock and fear and he tried to look to his sides, but the guy forced him to look right into his eyes

Levi recognized him immediately.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After hearing noise coming from his partner's room, Nico rushed over to help him. A lot of secret are being revealed of which most are better being kept than shared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!  
> So I wanted to post this chapter a long time ago, but it just kept getting longer and longer each time I just wanted to wrap it up, but in the end, I am very happy with the outcome.  
> I also made a playlist for it to listen to while reading if you're into that :)  
> [here it is](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7eSYv2a2t7S76kBVEOn5Eg?si=EIIFBgS9QayEUbTZa5jMdg)  
> Also, again a big thank you and here you go at [schmittandkim](https://schmittandkim.tumblr.com) for coming up with the idea and cheering me on and helping out when i had questions about the 007 universe (i eventually completely got pulled into this fandom and watched all the daniel craig movies throughout a few days haha)  
> (and also thanks to [glassesandkim](https://glassesandkim.tumblr.com) for letting me burrow her cat's name for Nico's first cat.)  
> Enjoy!

On his way upstairs, Nico still tried to recover from the sight that was Levi, dripping wet, a few droplets still running down his torso. In the seven months of them working together, he’s never seen him in less than a suit or vest. He’s only seen him in even more clothing. 

If Nico knew that seeing Levi like this was a probability, he would have prepared for this. He didn’t know how but he would have figured something out. 

He knew that he was in his room before Levi was from hearing the ‘ding’ of the elevator right before he closed his door. 

Before heading over to his partner's room, he decided to quickly change. But just as he took off his shirt, he heard loud rumbling and crashing coming from the room next to his’. 

Levi could be a little clumsy sometimes, but this was not within his norm. Nico quickly grabbed his gun and spare card for Levi’s room and opened the door. 

Behind it was Levi with a bloody nose, the bartender from yesterday and one of Pollanto’s body guards behind him. 

“Take your dirty hands off him!” Nico barked, pushing the baarkeper from the night before off Levi and onto the couch. The bodyguard moved, ready to jump in, but Trent waved him off, a dirty grin on his face. 

“If I were you, I’d better watch out, Mr. Kim,” Trent whispered into Nico’s ear. 

“009 wasn’t the only one to infiltrate your little organization,” he added before pushing the agent off. 

“You little weasel, I swear to god I’m gonna –“ 

“Nico.” Levi shook his head as Trent picked up his gun and headed towards the door. 

“Watch out, Kim,” he repeated, winking before leaving the room with his bodyguard. 

“What a prick,” Nico muttered. He wanted to put a bullet through his head, but right now his partner was more important. 

Levi was always more important. Sometimes it frightened Nico a little how deeply he had fallen for his Quartermaster in that short amount of time. 

After locking the door, he rushed over to Levi who was cleaning up the blood that had trickled down his nose. Nico took the tissue and gently tapped it off, caressing his cheek with the other hand. 

“Are you okay?” Nico whispered, leading him to the couch to sit down. 

“I –“ Levi glanced down at his hands and nodded. 

“Yeah,” he muttered, looking up again and into Nico’s eyes. He took the tissue from his hand and tossed it onto the coffee table. 

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he repeated, his voice much steadier than before. 

“I am going to kill this guy next time I see him,” Nico growled. Anyone hurting Levi was going up to the top of his hit list. 

“Nico –“ 

“No, I’m serious. This guy breaks in here and hurt you. I –“ 

Levi grabbed his shoulders. “Nico, stop.” 

“Just... stop. I am okay. You were here.” He let his hand slide down his shoulders over his chest which was when he finally realized that Nico wasn’t wearing anything but his pants. 

He stopped moving his hands when he noticed the scar right above Nico’s heart. Carefully, he touched it with his index finger and studied it a little closer. 

“What happened here?” Levi asked quietly. 

“I uh, got shot.” 

“When?” 

“First time I saw her after getting Double O status. Eight years ago. It was also the last time I saw her before yesterday.” 

Levi nodded softly. He knew that their jobs were dangerous. He was there when Nico came back with a bullet wound in his thigh. But seeing the scar so close to his heart... 

It scared him. It scared him a lot. 

He looked away, not able to bare the sight of the scar anymore, knowing that this could’ve been the end for Nico. His glance landed on the desk and the small box that harboured Nico’s new gun. It was open. 

Levi didn’t recall opening the box after finishing up his work on it last night. 

“Shit,” he breathed as he jumped up, rushing over to check if everything’s alright. 

“It’s gone,” he said. “Gun and device are both gone!” 

Nico jerked his head around. “What?” 

He got up to see the source of chaos for himself. 

“Yeah. It was here,” Levi pointed at the box. “I know it. Oh my God, M is going to fire me.” 

“She won’t.” 

Levi was walking in circles. “She will. I was supposed to build and secure it. And instead, I lost it. I lost the damn thing!” 

“Levi,” Nico stopped him by gently touching his shoulders, “It’s going to be okay. M won’t fire you. I’ll make sure of it.” 

“But how?” Levi asked quietly. At least he wasn’t freaking out anymore. Nico’s touch had that power to immediately reduce his stress levels. 

“Let that be my problem.” 

Levi nodded slightly, his mind still somewhere between getting fired and maimed. 

“Levi?” Nico whispered his name to get back his attention. When he didn’t react, the agent ran his hand down his arm to his hand, squeezing it gently. It seemed to bring Levi back as his head jerked up, then down to look at their hands and up again to look into Nico’s eyes. 

His partner had a soft smile on his lips and Levi couldn’t help but to mirror it. How was Nico always able to calm him down? No matter the situation, if Nico was there, Levi automatically felt infinitively safer. 

“So who did you tell about the device?” Nico asked. 

“Only M. Well, and you.” 

Nico didn’t think that Levi would tell anybody than protocol allowed him to. But better safe than sorry to rule out the culprit. 

“Maybe someone heard the two of you talk. Could you have been bugged?” 

Oh shit. Within a split-second Levi’s expression changed from neutral to downright pissed. He pulled away his hand and crossed his arms in front of his chest. 

“Excuse me?” Levi looked at him like he just accused him of being a traitor. 

“I mean –“ 

“No, I have not been bugged,” Levi cut him off sharply. “I would know.” 

“Or would you?” Okay, this really wasn’t the time to tease him, Nico knew that. And yet he chose to continue pushing his buttons. 

“I know you don’t know shit about technology unless further explained to you,” shit that was rough, “but I can guarantee you that I have not been bugged.” 

Nico knew that the only reason he felt bad about potentially discrediting his Quartermaster by asking those questions was purely because, well... Because he was Levi. But he also knew that he had to ask them. Okay, maybe not him in particular, but he rather it’s him than someone else. 

\- 

“She was at the bar yesterday. But we’re in a secluded hotel on the other side of the city. Nobody followed me back, so I am asking you, M. How did they find us? And how did they know about the device?” Nico asked, his arms crossed in front of his chest. 

The two were updating M through a secured line that Levi had established as soon as they had arrived the day before. After the attack, Levi had checked it twice before even touching the screen to call their boss. 

“I do not know what to tell you Mr. Kim. I am going to investigate further. Stay alert and finish the mission to the best of your abilities. And don’t die. There’s no time for that with there being a mole somewhere and you being the only one I can trust at this moment.” 

“No time to die. Nothing new,” Nico replied and hung up. 

“At least we still got the data from Glass’ tablet in London,” Levi muttered as he was typing something Nico didn’t understand. 

The climate of the room was still icy and it was not because of the air conditioning. 

Nico wistfully looked over to Levi who was sitting at the desk, ignoring him as best as he could. 

“Levi.” 

No answer. 

“Okay, listen. Pollanto knows where we are. And she loves Roulette. I’m pretty sure she’ll be waiting at the tables so I’ll head downstairs to meet her.” 

Levi turned around. “What? That’s not a good –“ 

“I’ll just have a little chat with her. As private as possible.” 

They had a lot of catching up to do. 

\- 

Nico wasn’t the biggest fan of Roulette. No, he was more of a poker guy, the Bellagio was the only place in Las Vegas he actually enjoyed. But they weren’t here for the fun, they were here to stop Pollanto from getting the ingredient for her serum. 

When he entered the casino, he could already see her, rolling the dice. Next to her, a bodyguard who was more of a stand-in for Nico than for her protection. The agent sauntered over to the table, opting to watch her from the other side of the table for a few minutes before slipping into the spot next to her. 

“Nadia,” he simply said. Trent handed him a martini. He wanted to throw it into his face. 

“Well hello, brother dear,” she greeted him, a smirk on her lips. 

Nico kept a polite smile. “You look good. Cut your hair.” 

He wasn’t even lying. This chin-long black bob really suited her. 

“Thank you. You look good too. Less bullets and a nice new suit,” she noted, finally turning around to face him. She signalled for her company to take over her part of the game. 

“Yeah, no need to put another one in there.” 

She chuckled and shook her head as she reached over to get a flute of champagne. She took a sip and watched her protegé roll the dice. 

“You know, maybe next time, make sure that your sources don’t lie with my girls. Or at least tell them to be less obvious.” She giggled. 

“For fuck’s sake the last guy could’ve entered with an ID of the MI6 and it would’ve taken longer to notice.” Another sip. At this point, Nico was convinced that she was only drinking to look sassier. 

It worked. 

“Baby brother, you know I always get what I want. So why are you still trying to fight me?” She asked, a hand on her hip. 

“Because what you’re doing is hurting innocent people.” 

She crinkled her nose. “Nobody is truly innocent.” 

“Who are you to decide who is and who isn’t?” 

Nadia looked down and chuckled. He was as naïve as she remembered him when her father brought him home for the very first time. 

“I never made you this offer, but...” She looked back up into his eyes. 

“You could switch over.” 

Nico frowned. “What do you mean?” 

“You know what I mean. Join me.” This was maybe the first genuine smile he had seen on her in years. 

“We would make a great team.” Nico couldn’t believe she actually just offered him to join her little club of psychopaths. His presence must’ve changed things somehow. Maybe she didn’t hate him after all. Maybe she was just sad and lonely. 

Or maybe she was just playing him. She was good at that. 

“Oh, don’t give me that look.” She rolled her eyes. 

“I’ve always been like this.” 

“No.” He shook his head. 

“No, you weren’t. You used to be bright and happy. You wanted to be a ballerina.” 

“You think I can still get into that?” She chuckled and emptied the glass, handing it over to the next passing by waiter. 

“This is not you. You can still stop all of this,” he whispered, almost pleading. 

“Oh Nico. Sweet, sweet naïve little brother.” She gave his shoulder a little squeeze. 

“There is no saving me. The only way to save yourself and your little boyfriend is to join me.” 

“Nadia –“ 

“I passed the point of no return eight years ago when I did _that_ ,” she poked her index finger right above his heart where she had shot him, “to you.” 

“If you wanted, you could’ve killed me. And yet you didn’t. You knew where to hit to not kill me.” 

“I was young. And soft. Don’t think I won’t do it the next time.” 

Nico smirked. “You won’t.” 

Nadia returned the smirk. She threw her dice and left the table. 

\- 

“One of our sources got compromised,” Nico reported. He and Levi were in Levi’s room, speaking to M. 

“How do you know that?” M asked. 

“From the source.” 

For a moment, there was just silence. 

That was until M stepped closer to the screen. “You met Pollanto?” 

Nico nodded. “Yes. She waited for me at the Roulette table.” 

“You met her.” He hadn’t seen M this surprised in a while. She shook her head slightly. 

“Why didn’t you tell us beforehand?” 

“It was a coincidence –“ 

“Coincidence my ass, Kim.” 

Levi’s eyes widened and he had a hard time to stifle the shocked laughter that wanted to escape his mouth. It’s not even like M never cursed. She did, occasionally. But Levi will probably never get used to it coming out of nowhere like this. 

“Well. What now?” 

“I will get to the bottom of this. The two of you stay on course.” 

“Aye aye ma’am.” 

If looks could kill through a screen, Nico would’ve dropped dead by now. 

\- 

Nico couldn’t just sit on his couch anymore. It’s been exactly five minutes and not doing anything while Nadia was right out there, was driving him crazy. Although the air between them still wasn’t clear yet, he decided to go over to Levi’s room, asking him to track down Nadia for him. 

An amazing thing about Levi was that even when fighting, he will still do his job as if nothing happened. Partly it’s because he has to, but there was another Quartermaster before him that would sulk so much, that Nico practically had to beg him to do his job. He was glad when he left. 

Nico wasn’t sure if he should knock or just enter the room, but since he did have some common curtesy left, he knocked at the door. Maybe if his partner didn’t open in two minutes he would just – 

The door opened and Levi silently stepped aside to let him in. 

“What do you need?” His tone was still icy, Nico knew that he had to make it up to him. 

“To apologize.” 

Levi raised an eyebrow in surprise. “What?” 

“You heard me.” 

Levi chuckled. “No, I didn’t.” 

Nico returned the smile and stepped a little closer. 

“I’m really sorry. You know that I think that you’re amazing, right?” He whispered and cupped Levi’s cheek, running his thumb over it. 

Levi closed his eyes and smiled wider, placing his hand on top of Nico’s. He shook his head slightly before opening them again and removing Nico’s hand from his cheek, still holding onto it. 

“I overreacted. I know that,” he admitted. 

“It’s just –“ He looked down and fumbled with Nico’s hand. It was bigger than his own, a little rougher. He liked the touch of it on his cheek though. 

“I’m clumsy. And I got teased about it a lot in college after spilling coffee over my keyboard.” 

Yes, still sounded ridiculous to use as a reason to jump to Nico’s throat at. But what else could he say? It was the truth. 

“They knew that you were better than all of them combined. That’s why they felt the need to tease you. To make their talentless selves feel better,” Nico murmured. He ran his thumb over the back of Levi’s hand and Levi let out a soft laugh. 

It was tender moments like this that made Levi yearn to throw all his hesitation over board and just give in to the impulse of just pulling him closer and kiss him like there was no tomorrow. Because there might not be and he just wanted to disregard the world around them to dissolve into a moment of bliss. 

“So,” Levi spoke up quietly, trying to stop himself from imagining such foolishness as being with a person who’s constantly in danger, “what really brought you to my room?” 

Nico tried to hide the small grin that wanted to curl up his lips. Of course he knew. 

“Who says I’m not just here to apologize?” 

Levi returned the grin and boldly wrapped his arms around Nico’s neck. He imagined doing this for a very long time. Yes, his mind was telling him to step back and cool down a little, but every ounce of his body did it’s best to fight against it. 

“I don’t think that’s why you came all the way over.” 

“No?” Nico playfully raised an eyebrow. 

“Well, why do you think I’m here then?” His hands flew to Levi’s hips. 

“Probably,” he ran his thumb over the back of Nico’s neck, knowing that the answer to that question might scare his partner off, so he tried to enjoy this as much as possible. 

“Probably because you want to find your sister.” Nico let go of his hips. 

“My –“ Levi could see that he was hoping that he hadn’t made the connection yet and was talking about something else. 

“Pollanto. I know that – I know she’s your sister.” 

“What?” Levi let go of his neck as Nico took a step backwards. 

“I heard you, forgot the mic in your handkerchief?” 

“Who else heard this?” Nico looked around the room. “Did you –“ 

“I did not record it.” 

“So you just spied on me?” 

“What?” Levi frowned. He wouldn’t say that he was spying on Nico. He just – 

“No. I mean, technically I guess you _could_ call it that, but really –“ 

“But really what, Levi? What? You decide eavesdropping is totally okay?” He shouldn’t have done that. He really shouldn’t have done that. Not because Nico didn’t want him to know. But because it put him in danger. Even more than working this job. 

“You were all alone, alright? You tell me that you’re going to head downstairs to have a chat with your archnemises and I’m supposed to just wait here, waiting until you’re coming back?” 

“Yes.” 

“Hoping that you even will come back.” 

“Oh, come on.” Nico rolled his eyes and turned away from him for a moment. 

“No. Not ‘come on’. All I’ve known is that she’s dangerous. She’s killing people in cold blood for messing up, because in her organization nobody makes mistakes.” 

“She’s always been a perfectionist.” 

Levi was not impressed. At all. 

“This is not a bloody joke, Nico! For all I know she could’ve dragged you outside and put a bullet through your head.” 

“But she didn’t.” 

“Yeah, ‘cause she already put one through your heart.” 

“Not through, just right above it,” Nico corrected him. 

Levi sighed and shook his head as he turned around, pressing his hands against his hips. This man was driving him nuts. Completely insane. 

“Please stop,” he whispered. “Don’t joke about this. Not now, not like this.” 

“Hey,” Nico carefully touched Levi’s shoulder. “I’m still here. And I won’t go anywhere anytime soon, alright?” 

“How do you know?” 

Nico stepped in front of him and moved his hand to the nape of Levi’s neck, running his fingers through his hair. He brought up his other hand and placed it onto Levi’s cheek. 

“Because I have something to look forward to.” 

Levi couldn’t help but to chuckle at that, placing his hands onto Nico’s hips and pulling him a little bit closer. 

“You’re so cheesy.” 

Nico grinned content and ran his thumb over Levi’s cheek. 

“Can I – Can I see…” 

Nico gave him a questioning look. 

“The scar. Can I see the scar?” 

Nico nodded softly and ran his thumb over Levi’s lower lip as Levi’s hands glided upwards over his partner’s shirt until he reached the collar of it. He helped him take off the jacket of his suit, dropping it onto the floor behind Nico. Then, he slowly began to unbutton the white shirt. Button after button, more of Nico’s chest got exposed. When he reached the last button, he hesitated for a moment. 

He had seen the scar before. What was it that frightened him like this? Knowing where it came from and the possibility that one day Nico’s sister might actually kill him? He already knew that Nico could get killes any day. And yet seeing that scar... It made his fear even more real. 

After he finally undid the last button, Levi slipped the shirt off Nico’s torso. It landed on top of the jacket. 

He carefully ran his fingers over Nico’s chest where the scar was. 

“She shot you.” 

“Yeah.” 

“Right here.” 

“Yeah.” 

“Please don’t get shot again.” 

Nico sighed quietly. “You know I can’t promise you that.” 

“Right.” 

“Don’t let her shoot you then.” 

“She won’t shoot me again.” 

“How do you know?” 

“I just do. You trust me?” Nico asked, his nose brushing against Levi’s. 

“Of course,” he whispered. Their lips were almost touching at this point. Levi closed his eyes, closing the distance between them. 

But then Nico pulled away. 

What was he doing? Wasn’t this everything Nico wanted for the most part of this past year? To kiss Levi? And be with him? Wasn’t this in his dreams that he woke up from alone, wishing that maybe one day it would become real? 

So why did he pull away? 

He saw the confusion in Levi’s eyes and wanted to slap himself. God, for a Double O agent, he was a big fat chicken. 

“I –“ He didn’t know what to say. Amazing. 

“Oh, uhm.” Levi didn’t seem mad. Or disappointed. Just – confused. 

“I guess now you’re the one who’s not quite ready yet, huh?” He noted with a soft smile. 

“I –“ 

“Don’t worry. I’ll wait.” 

Nico had never heard any more comforting words. 

\- 

It took him a while, but together with the information they gathered from Glass’ phone and office and knowing that Nadia actually was here, Levi was able to narrow the meeting place down to three locations in the city. 

One of them was already crossed out after seeing that it was right next to another casino. That wasn’t Nadia’s style. She preferred secluded places on the brim of the city. Which left an abandoned subway station and the Lake Las Vegas. 

Nadia used to love The Little Mermaid. On her ninth birthday, their parents gave her a teal fin, so every time they went to a pool or a lake, Nadia would put it on and be in the water for the whole time unless their dad would just come in and pick her up. 

Maybe he would be wrong, but he was very sure that the lake was going to be the place where she set the meeting. She wanted him there. So she’d pick a location he’ll be able to find. 

A little while after Nico had arrived, a black SUV pulled up. Four men in suits got out of the car, one of them with a suitcase in hand. That was probably him, Nico thought. André Hanson. 

He hadn’t heard much about Hanson. Only that he was a brilliant chemist and not exactly voluntarily working for Nadia. Nico wasn’t sure what she held against him or if he just liked being alive, but when Levi had looked through the files off Glass’ hard drive, he had found a folder with Hanson’s name. He hadn’t had the time yet to decrypt it since the place and time of their little meeting was of more importance. 

“Good evening, Sir,” Nico said as he stepped out of the shadow, approaching him. Hanson glanced over to Nico and furrowed his brow. 

“Excuse me, that suitcase looks rather heavy. You want me to hold this for you?” Nico suggested. 

Hanson squinted at him with suspicion. “You’re with her?” 

Nico shrugged. “Sure.” 

“Yeah, I don’t fucking think so.” He stepped away and Nico prepared himself for Hanson’s bodyguards to surround him. 

He huffed out a laugh. Three guys as backup when you’re dealing biohazardous material that could help developing a virus that could destroy all of humanity? He must have no clue what Nadia’s plans were. 

“Okay guys. Who’s goin’ first?” 

Just as the words left his mouth one of the guys took a swing at him. Nico blocked him easily and pushed him against attacker number two. 

Both of them stumbled to the left towards the bench. Number two was able to catch himself, but number one just fell to the ground. 

The third guy didn’t pay any attention to his friends. His eyes were all on Nico. The agent smirked. 

“Where did that guy hire you? For fuck’s sake, even my partner could take you out and he’s behind a screen all day,” Nico laughed. 

The third guy threw himself against Nico, trying to tackle him, but the agent just used his energy to spin him around and throw him to the ground. 

“Just don’t. All you get from me are broken bones. And extra ventilation to your brain.” 

He walked over to Hanson. 

“Who are you?” He asked. 

“Your biggest nightmare if you don’t hand over the suitcase right now.” 

“She’s going to kill me if I don’t give her this.” 

“She won’t. I’ll make sure of that.” 

The guy squinted at Nico. 

“Or I could just kill you right here right now,” he raised his gun, pointing it at his head. 

“So pick and choose.” 

The guy sighed and handed over the suitcase. Well, that was easier than expected. But then again, the guy had really bad security anyways. What else was he supposed to do? 

“Alright. Go back to a secure place, I’ll let somebody know what you did for us,” Nico said. Hanson nodded and went back into his limo, driving off almost instantly after his three men made it back in too. 

“You heard that?” Nico asked through his earpiece. 

“Yes. Contacting M right now,” Levi confirmed. 

“Good.” He heard another car approach him and smirked. 

“She’s here.” 

“Be careful.” 

“You’re worried about me?” 

“I –“ 

“Nico!” A familiar voice called out as the car door opened. Nadia hopped out of the black Mercedes and walked over to him, a big smile on her face. 

“You made this so much cheaper for me,” she noted, pointing at the suitcase in his hand. 

“Yeah, well this one is not for you.” 

Nadia pouted. 

“So I see you chose against me, huh?” 

“It was never even an option.” 

“Sure.” She sighed theatrically and put a hand on her hip. 

“I guess then I have to get this one,” she pointed again at the suitcase with her perfectly manicured finger, “on my own.” 

“I guess you can try to.” 

Both of them smirked before Nadia went in with the first punch. Nico dodged it and took a few steps back. He quickly changed hands holding the suitcase so his right hand was free. 

“Tell me,” he dodged her fist again, “Why Pollanto anyways? Why not keep Kim?” 

He heard the faint crack in her hand when he blocked her with the suitcase. 

“And ruin the surprise?” 

She tried to grab it, but Nico was quick to pull it away from her again. 

The moment the focused a second on his grip on the suitcase Nadia hit him the first time. 

He felt his nose fracture and let out a low grunt. 

Pushing it back will hurt. 

“Why don’t you just give me the suitcase so I can leave?” She asked with a grin. 

He almost lost balance when she kicked at this ankle, but only almost. 

Hatsumi’s training really payed off. They have both been trained by him when they were younger, but Nadia had stopped once she started ballet training. 

“Maybe I just don’t want you to leave again?” 

She blocked his fist with her hand right in front of her face and huffed out a laugh. 

“Is that so?” 

He could taste the blood when she let go of him. She looked around and grinned. 

“You’re playing on time,” she said. 

“You don’t wanna take me out yourself, so you’re trying to distract me until your little friends arrive, don’t you?” 

Nico didn’t say a word. Of course this was his plan. He hated how much she was able to get under his skin. He wondered if he had the same effect on her. If he did, she was better at hiding it than he was. 

She stopped fighting against him and turned around, walking towards the SUV. 

“I can’t let you go, Nadia,” he said, pulling out his gun and pointing it at her. 

“Not again.” 

The click of the safety being turned off made her stop. She turned around, looking at the gun and smirked. 

“Well, then you just have to shoot me, don’t you?” 

This was the moment. He had to do it. He just had to shoot her. Or else she’ll walk away once again. 

He had one shot left. Only one. 

And he had to make it count. 

“C'mon baby brother. You can do it.” 

He pulled the trigger. 

The next thing he saw was Nadia clasping onto her shoulder. Her expression changed from confusion to surprise, a little bit of pride mixed in. 

He watched her get into the black SUV before he disappearing with the suitcase. 

\- 

“I shot her.” 

Levi’s eyes widened. “You did what?” 

“I shot her. With one of your bullets. You can probably still rebuild the monitor, right?” 

“I can try.” 

“Good.” 

When Levi says he’ll try something, it usually worked out. 

“But how did you –“ 

“Remember when you first showed me the bullets and I took one out?” 

“You wanted to see how light the bullet is.” 

“Yes,” he nodded for emphasis, “And then I put it into my pocket. I only noticed the next morning when I put away the suit. I thought I’ll just keep it in case something goes wrong.” 

“And you decided not to tell me.” 

“Yes.” 

For a moment, the Quartermaster was a little stunned by Nico’s honesty. 

“Why?” 

“I had a feeling.” 

“A feeling.” 

“Yes. That something was going on. I mean where did we suddenly get that information about Nadia’s whereabouts?” 

“You don’t think that M...” Levi trailed off. The thought alone of M being in the sheets with Nadia made him very uncomfortable. 

“No. No, she’d never work with Nadia.” Nico shook his head. 

“But us suddenly having information about her next deal? We didn’t know where she’s been for eight years and now she suddenly reappears to the surface? It felt fishy.” 

Levi nodded as he finished up connecting the computer to the secured network of the MI6. 

“Why didn’t you tell me? I thought we were partners.” 

“Since when do you call us that?” 

Levi opened his mouth, but closed it quickly. 

“We can call M now,” he said and was about to get up, instead of giving Nico an answer. 

“Alright. But Levi?” 

The Quartermaster turned and looked at him, his hand hovering over the mouse. 

“Don’t tell M about... About Nadia. Okay?” 

He nodded. “Okay.” 

\- 

M had ordered them to return the same day. They flew back only hours after their conversation and Levi had crawled into bed the second he arrived at his apartment. Twelve hours later, he stood outside his partner’s penthouse, knocking at the door. 

So much happened had the past two days, and now, after finally getting a good night’s rest, his mind was racing. He had to talk to someone about it. And since his missions weren’t really civilian-friendly... 

“Levi.” Nico sounded surprised. Like he didn’t expect to see him here. Which, well, he probably didn’t. Levi didn’t give him any notice, he just showed up at his doorstep. 

“Hey. I –” He stopped abruptly when he noticed the black cat in Nico’s arms. 

“You got a cat?” 

“I got a cat.” 

“You got a cat.” 

“Yep.” Nico smiled and petted said cat. 

“Wanna come in?” He asked as he stepped aside to let Levi in. 

He nodded and closed the door behind him. 

“Is everything alright?” Nico asked carefully. 

“What?” Levi was still too focused on the presence of the cat. And the sight of Nico in a hoodie and sweats. He wasn’t used to see Nico being in comfy clothes just for the sake of being comfortable. 

“Oh sure. I just – What’s their name?“ 

“Huh?” Nico looked down at the animal in his arms and grinned. 

“Oh, that’s Kali. Kali, that’s Levi. Say hello.” 

Levi hesitated, but then carefully petted the kitten’s small head. 

"Hello Kali," he whispered in awe. 

Nico snickered. 

"I meant her." 

“Oh.” Levi blushed a little and just stared at Kali. She meowed at him. 

Levi had never visited his apartment, so he took a look around as they walked over to the grey couch. 

“You want a tea or something?” Nico asked as he filled up the kettle. 

“Uhh, sure. Thanks.” 

Kali settled on the armrest next to him and Levi couldn’t help but to smile. She was so cute. He always wanted a cat growing up. But since his mom was allergic and already had to take medication, that wasn’t really an option. And then in college, the building didn’t allow any pets. After that, he just kinda didn’t have the time to care for a pet, so the thought of getting a cat had already left his mind a while ago. 

But seeing how the Double O agent was able to care for one, he was sure that he could manage the same thing somehow. Or he’ll just secretly move in to co-parent Kali. 

Not like Nico would mind. 

The agent returned with two cups of tea and put them onto the coffee table in front of them as he sat down. 

“Hey, Nico?” 

“Yeah?” He turned around and leaned over. 

“Are you okay?” 

Nico couldn’t help but to let out a small laugh. Was he okay? He didn’t even know himself. 

“Maybe once all of this is over.” 

Kali jumped off the armrest, leaving the two some privacy. 

“You think that’s a good plan? Postponing your happiness?” Levi tilted his head to the side. 

“In this job, happiness only complicates things.” 

“Wow.” Levi was stunned. “That’s a lot of bullshit.” 

Nico raised his brow. “Excuse me?” 

“You heard me,” Levi countered. 

Levi took Nico’s hand between his own, running his thumb over Nico’s palm. He smiled softly and interlaced their fingers as Nico broke the silence again. 

“I shot my sister.” 

He hadn’t said it aloud like that yet. It felt weird. She always prided herself with having shot him, but he couldn’t do the same thing. It was different for him. But then again, he didn’t want to infect people with a potential deadly virus like she did, so there was that. 

“Yeah you did.” 

Nico shook his head and looked away. He noticed that it had begun to snow outside. 

“I’m a terrible person.” 

He was. Or at least he felt like he was. Nothing did could outweigh the things he did. The people he hurt. People he killed. 

He never cared about being seen as a good person. 

That was until he met his partner. 

Levi lifted up his hand to cup Nico’s cheek. 

“No, you’re not.” 

Nico sighed. How could Levi not think that he was terrible? He just shot his sister and here they were, sitting on his couch like nothing happened and they were some sort of couple. 

“You’re not perfect either. None of us are.” Hearing Levi say that was kinda ironic since he’s the one person that Nico thought came the closest to actual perfection. 

He shook his head and put his hand on top of Levi’s that was still on his cheek. 

Nico enjoyed Levi’s touch. He enjoyed being near him, talking to him. Feeling him. 

Nico hadn’t enjoyed living in a long, long time. 

After his parents’ death, he spent months in a state of callousness. Nadia’s father had taken him in before he was able to be sent to an orphanage. He and his wife did their best to take care of the boy who had just lost his parents. 

Nico didn’t talk for weeks. Only when one day, Nadia brought home a stray cat, he seemed to find his voice again. 

At first, it was only a few words he hushed when petting the small, grey ball of fluff. Ming had immediately found a liking to him and Nadia and would alternate between the two for infinite pettings. 

After a while, he would call out for him when he and Nadia came home from school. Then, one day, he started talking about Ming to Nadia and after that, he slowly but steadily opened up to the people around him. 

He wasn’t magically healed from his pain, but he was able to manage it better. Those taekwondo lessons Sang-hun had enrolled him in probably helped too. 

When he was a teen, everyone around him had plans about their future. But Nico, however, had no idea. Not even one clue. 

Before the accident, he wanted to become a doctor, just like his mom. But when he lost her and his father, it was like he also lost part of himself and with it, his hopes and dreams. 

So when it was time to decide what to do after finishing school, the Royal Navy seemed like his best option. At least now he had a purpose, something to work and fight for. Something to concentrate on when life threw new obstacles at him. 

He had tried to stay in contact with Nadia after their parents had died, but a few weeks after the funeral, she had just vanished and Nico didn’t have the energy to go out and find her. He had to deal with his own feelings, his own grief and buried most of it in work where he practically climbed up the ranks in superspeed. 

That was until one day, a woman with firey red hair stood in his cabin, offering him a spot at the Secret Intelligence Service. 

It’s not like he had denied himself joy all this time. He hadn’t. It was just hard to feel anything after enduring so much loss. So while he was not actively looking for somebody, who really had the time in this line of work, he _was_ open to meeting someone. Or at least that’s what he told himself. 

Because when he met Levi, this sudden attraction that he felt hit him completely unprepared. 

After a sleepless night in which he slowly got used to the fact that he was very attracted to the new Quartermaster, Nico asked him out. 

And then the unthinkable happened. 

He got rejected. 

And after that, he found himself thinking about the Quartermaster whenever he had a second to breathe. The first time he thought about him in the middle of a mission, it almost scared him. Nico was usually able to blend out everything that wasn’t part of his current mission, so when the thought of Levi entered his mind while cracking an old safe, he knew that something unexpected had happened. 

He caught feelings for the man that rejected him. 

Once he got comfortable with the thought of actually wanting to be with someone, he continued his flirt attack. And although Levi rejected him over and over again, Nico didn’t just give up. 

It is important to note that he wasn’t a creep, okay? After the first rejection, he retracted and tried to keep it professional, but he couldn’t help but to notice the lingering glances he got from the Quartermaster. So after two very confusing weeks in which he debated whether or not he should ask him out again, he just did it. 

And got rejected again. 

“Nico... I – I'd love to,” Levi had said, “b-but I don’t think it would be a good idea _r_ _ight now_.” 

_Right now_. Levi had put quite some emphasis on that part. 

Nico was pulled back into reality when he felt Levi’s thumb brush over his cheek. The delicate touch was enough for Nico to completely lose his train of thought and if he was being honest, right now he was really glad he did. Because that only left him with the conclusion had he already had drawn months ago. 

He grinned and suddenly got up, pulling Levi outside to the balcony. He heard Levi mutter something in confusion before he turned around again. 

“Nico, what’s – Oh.” Levi looked up into the sky, thick snowflakes landing on his face and glasses. 

Nico absolutely loved the way Levi’s eyes lit up when he noticed the big fluffy snowflakes falling down from the sky. His eyes, together with his mouth agape in awe, were enough for Nico to just melt. 

“It’s beautiful,” the Quartermaster whispered. 

“Yeah,” Nico breathed, still looking at Levi as he put his hands onto his hips, “it really is.” 

Levi looked back at Nico and couldn’t help but to blush a little, placing his hands onto Nico’s chest. 

Taking one hand off his hips, Nico cupped Levi’s cheek and carefully pulled him a little closer, stopping right before their lips touched, waiting for some confirmation. They were close enough that Nico couldn’t see the smile on Levi’s lips, but instead feel the breathy laugh on his skin. 

The goosebumps that he felt were only amplified when he _finally_ felt Levi’s lips on his’, wrapping his arms around him. Levi’s hands slipped up, one cupping Nico’s cheek, the other running through his thick, soft hair. 

Their mouths opened slowly, tongues moving in a delicate rhythm. 

Kissing Levi felt so familiar and yet brand new. It was like coming home from a journey that lasted his whole life. And he didn’t want to leave this home anytime soon. 

They stumbled back into the apartment, Nico’s arm still around Levi’s waist as he closed the balcony door mid-kiss. He felt Levi’s cold fingers slip under his hoodie and grinned. 

At least until he heard someone giggle behind them. 

The two broke the kiss and turned around to where the sound came from. 

“As adorable as the two of you are, I’m afraid I have to break up this little celebration.” 

“What the _fuck_ are you doing here?” Nico sneered, stepping closer to Nadia and in front of Levi. 

“Nico.” He frowned. Her voice had suddenly become so much softer. 

“I –“ She shook her head. 

“Some of my people want to kill me,” she whispered. 

“What?” He frowned and looked at Levi who just shrugged. He had never seen her this scared. 

“Nico, please.” She crossed the room and grabbed his hand. “You have to help me.” 

Nico had no idea if he should believe her. 

Back when they were still kids, she would test his reactions by pretending that she got hurt. And despite knowing that she would do that, Nico came running every time to check if she was okay. Her lying had always been a possibility, but that had never stopped him from making sure that she was okay. 

But that was in the past and right now he couldn’t just blindly believe her as there was still another person in the room who he couldn’t just put at risk like he’d do if it were just him and his sister. 

“I’m not going anywhere with you.” He shook off her hands. 

“Because I don’t believe you,” he said firmly, immediately noticing her getting irritated by this. He never didn’t help her. 

“What?” She frowned. “Do you want me to die? Do you hate me so much that you want me dead?” 

Nico rolled his eyes and scoffed. “Oh, stop this right now.” 

Whenever she didn’t get what she wanted, she would try and guilt trip the people around her into bending over to her will. 

“No, Nico you don’t understand –“ 

“I do.” 

“Nico –“ 

“Levi, get out of here.” 

“What?” Levi shook his head. He would not leave him alone with Nadia. 

“No.” 

“Levi. Get out.” 

“But –“ 

Nico turned around with a pointed stare. 

“Trust me.” 

“But I –“ Levi whispered, clinging onto his arm, making it even harder for Nico to stand his ground. 

“I know.” Nico cupped his cheek and kissed him softly. 

“Now go.” 

Levi nodded slightly and squeezed his arm before taking his jacket and walking towards the apartment door. He turned around to have a look at him before finally leaving. 

“Adorable,” Nadia snorted. Her face had changed from being overwhelmed by fear to slightly annoyed. She wasn’t used to Nico saying ‘no’ to her. 

“Saving your little boyfriend. Was that on the balcony the first time you two kissed?” 

“Where is it?” 

“Where is what?” She asked innocent. 

“I don’t know.” Nico shrugged. “You can’t shoot me, but want me dead.” 

“Can’t shoot you, my ass. I could kill you right here, right now.” Her glance wandered over to the kitchen island, specifically, the knife holder. 

Nico opened his arms. “Well then knock yourself out if that’s what you want.” 

Nadia laughed and rolled her eyes. 

“I don’t want you dead, dummy. Where would be the fun in that?” 

“So what, you just wanna hurt me _somehow_.” 

“Just a bit.” 

“Then what did you do? Plant a bomb? That’s your style after all when you can’t do it in person.” 

“Bombs are just so much fun, baby brother. They’re impactful and unpredictable. Just like me.” She grinned as she pulled a small remote control out of the pocket of her navy-blue coat. 

“And you expect me to just sit here until your little present blows up?” 

“Nah. But that’s why I got some friends to keep you company until it detonates.” She grinned as her two bodyguards stepped into the room. Did she tell them to hide and come out when she said the magic words? She really loved dramatic entrances. 

“They could die, do they know that?” 

“Oh they do, but they’re completely loyal to me and my organisation. It’s actually a privilege for them to do this for me, isn’t that right, boys?” They two just nodded. 

“You’re insane.” 

“Maybe a little bit,” she giggled before crossing the room and kissing his cheek. 

“I really hope you pull through, Nico. It would be a shame. And really boring too,” she whispered before turning around and leaving the apartment, leaving Nico and her two henchmen behind. 

\- 

Levi stood outside, waiting for Nico to come out some time after him. Instead, it was Nadia who left the building, the entrance door falling shut behind her. 

When she noticed the Quartermaster, she sauntered over to him and took a deep breath as she enjoyed the cold London air of the night. 

“The two of you make an adorable couple,” she noted. 

“Where is he?” He shoved her against the glass wall. She just grinned and patted his cheek. 

“He’s upstairs. With two of my men. Really brave men. They’re ready to die just ‘cause I said so, isn’t that astounding?” 

Levi eyes widened. “What do you mean, ready to die?” What did she do to Nico? 

“You seem to care about him. That’s nice. I hope you’ll still be there for him if he makes it out alive.” She pushed him off her without any struggle and walked away. A black car stopped right in front of her as she turned around one last time. 

“It might take a while though for him to recover, so don’t give up that easily,” she added right before the driver closed her door. 

Levi frowned and looked up at the apartment complex. What did she mean by that? What happened while he was gone? He had to get back up there, now. 

But just as he heard the car driving off, there was a loud bang coming from one of the apartments upstairs. 

“What –“ He ran over to some shelter in form of the canopy of the bakery next to the building. Some glass landed next to him, accompanied with a lot of dirt and gravel. 

Without even looking up, he knew exactly where the explosion had come from. 

“No,” he whispered. 

“No. Oh God, no.” 

It didn’t take long until he could hear the concert of different sirens coming closer and closer by the second while he was unable to move. All he could do was to keep staring at the burning apartment. 

At one point there was somebody in front of him, asking him something, but Levi couldn’t understand what it was. He also wasn’t even trying at all. There was nothing that he cared about right now. 

Absolutely nothing. 

He felt completely empty. 

Not one muscle in his body wanted to move. He didn’t want to think, he didn’t want to speak, he didn’t want to breathe. 

He didn’t want to die either, he just didn’t want to exist right now. 

\- 

Time was a concept that Levi wasn’t aware of anymore. He had no idea how long he was standing there, staring at the burning apartment, not moving an inch. 

But he somehow got pulled out of his catatonic state when he heard a familiar voice. 

“Just let me talk to him,” the voice said. 

While he was still not moving, he was finally able to listen to what was happening around him. 

“Levi. Hey,” he felt a soft touch on his shoulder and his head shot down to look at it, hoping it would be Nico’s hand. But it wasn’t. This hand was way more petite and its nails were painted dark red. He felt like he had seen this hand before. Many times. 

He couldn’t quite pinpoint it until he looked at the person in front of him and sighed. 

M was standing in front of him, saying something about leaving and getting some rest. Which sounded good, because Levi was exhausted. He was feeling so completely and utterly exhausted. Like somebody sucked out all the energy he had. 

He couldn’t remember why he felt like that until he caught another glance of the building. 

“No,” he whispered as the memory of the explosion came back. 

“Levi?” M repeated his name as if that could get him back to reality. 

“I have to...” he muttered right before he started to run towards the main entrance of the apartment complex. 

However, he didn’t get far as he was stopped by two police officer, holding him back. His brain couldn’t register anything they said. 

“You don’t understand. My... my... Nico is still in there. My partner. I have to... I have to help him!” He tried to get out of the hold of those police officers, but instead, they just brought him back to M. 

“Miss, you can’t just take him back home. He needs treatment. And he’s a witness –“ 

“I do not care what you think. I know exactly how to care for him. I am going to get him home and we will come to the station once he feels better. You have enough people you can interrogate for now,” M snapped back and motioned for her driver to help Levi get into her car. 

“But Miss –“ 

M didn’t listen to any of this anymore. She got into the car and they drove off only seconds later. 

\- 

Levi had no recollection about the way back home. The first thing he remembered after being stopped by the officers, was sitting on his couch with M telling him to eat something before she left. He didn’t. 

He just stared at one spot of the coffee table in front of him, not able to hold a single thought. 

He didn’t know how long he’s been sitting there, but when he heard a knock on the door, he jumped. He rarely got any visitors and part of Levi definitely didn’t want to get up for anything right now. But when the knocking got louder, he sighed and got up to get it over with. 

Maybe he gets lucky and it’s Pollanto killing him too. At least then all of this would hurt less. 

Never in a hundred years could he have been prepared for the sight that was behind his door. 

“What –“ 

“Hey,” Nico said in a low voice with Kali in his arms. 

“You – you...” Levi still couldn’t believe his eyes so he reached out to touch Kali. When he actually felt her fur, he jerked his hand away, taking a few steps back and holding onto the dresser behind him. He watched the not-dead man in front of him with widened eyes as he took a few steps in his direction, closing the door behind him. 

“What the fuck!” 

Kali meowed surprised and Nico let her down to roam Levi’s apartment. 

“Let me explain –“ 

“You –“ Levi interrupted, shaking his head as he couldn’t get out another word. Instead, he carefully touched Nico’s chest, running up one hand to his cheek, feeling the slight stubble. 

He was here. Nico was here. He wasn’t dead, how – 

Instead of letting his brain make up some explanation or asking Nico, Levi just grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and pulled him close until their mouths were crashing into each other in a heated kiss. Almost instantly did he remove Nico’s jacket and fumbled with the buttons on his shirt as he shoved him towards his bedroom. 

\- 

Nico liked holding Levi. It’s what he had dream of for months. The real deal, however, was nothing compared to those imaginations. 

Actually holding someone in your arms felt way better than imagining what it might feel like. Kissing those lips was a whole different experience than just thinking about it day and night. Feeling the warm skin of the person he desired for so long against his own was a surprise that Nico would not have anticipated a few days ago. 

It’s not like Levi was his first time ever. But he was the first person that actually mattered to Nico. He was the first who Nico ever felt a connection to. He was the first who made Nico feel like it was okay to give up his wall, his safety net, just by being in the same room with him. He was the first to make Nico feel like home. 

“You’re amazing,” Levi whispered as he placed a kiss onto Nico’s collarbone. 

The agent chuckled softly and ran his hand over Levi’s back, pulling him closer and kissing his forehead. 

“I’m glad she let you go.” 

“I’m glad you made it out of there somehow.” 

“I don’t know what it is with the guys those people hire, but they’re really bad at what they’re doing.” Nico frowned. He knocked them out in what felt like ten seconds. 

“Or I’m just kicking ass at an exceptionally high rate.” 

“Oh my God,” Levi laughed and shook his head. Nico loved hearing him laugh. It was a beautiful sound that he hoped to hear more of in the future. 

In the future... 

“It’ll sound stupid, but...” Nico trailed off. 

“But what?” 

When Nico looked into his eyes, he just knew that he could tell him anything. 

“I still love her.” 

Levi didn’t say a word, but instead grabbed Nico’s hand and kissed it. 

“I know she’s a terrible human. She did terrible things, but...” He trailed off again. This was weird. This whole thing was weird. Maybe he was even more damaged than he thought he was. 

“She’s still your sister.” 

Levi said it with such utter lack of judgement, that Nico was almost taken aback by the statement until he realized that he was right. 

“She’s still my sister,” Nico repeated quietly. 

Levi drew small circles onto Nico’s chest with his finger and pressed a soft kiss over his collar bone. Nico wrapped his arm around him and pulled him closer, kissing the top of his head. 

“Maybe this is the time,” he mumbled lost in thought. 

“Time for what?” Levi asked and looked up at Nico. 

“To retire.” 

Levi raised an eyebrow. “You? Retiring?” 

“Yeah. Why not? I didn’t have anything to live for before. But now...” He ran his fingers through Levi’s soft hair and smiled faintly as he studied his love’s face. 

“Wow,” Levi whispered stunned. 

“I just – I think I served the MI6 enough,” Nico explained. 

“No, I get it. You definitely did. I’m just – I didn’t think I’d ever hear those words from you.” 

“Yeah. Well I thought I’d just die one day and that’s it. No retirement plans necessary.” 

“Well, I’m really glad you changed your mind,” Levi chuckled and placed his index finger under Nico’s chin, gently pulling him closer into a slow kiss. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! This one is very special to my heart so if you liked it, i apprechiate comments a lot :)

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there! So what do you think? Let me know with a comment, I love reading those :')
> 
> Follow me on tumblr at [orthoglasses](http://orthoglasses.tumblr.com/)!


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